Hawaii Teachers Plan Strike Vote Over Pay Demands

Teachers in Hawaii—who say they are long overdue for a
raise—are expected to vote this week on whether to strike. If
they vote yes, the walkout will probably happen the first week of
April, just as many schools are coming back from spring break and
beginning the final stretch of the school year.

The Hawaii State Teachers Association, an affiliate of the National
Education Association, is demanding a 22 percent raise over four years.
Gov. Benjamin J. Cayetano, a Democrat, has offered raises ranging from
10 percent to 20 percent over that period, with teachers at the lower
end of the salary scale getting the bigger increases.

State leaders argue that they can't go higher because of rising
costs associated with a federal consent decree requiring the
improvement of services to students with special needs. The decree
stems from a 1994 lawsuit, known as Felix v. Cayetano, in
which the plaintiffs argued that the state was not adequately serving
children with mental-health needs.

"We are open to addressing [the teachers'] concerns," said Davis K.
Yogi, the state's chief negotiator. "But we have to wait until we have
a real handle on the Felix numbers."

Danielle L. Lum, a spokeswoman for the union, said teachers have
been working under the terms of their old contract for more than a year
and have not received a raise in two.

No 'Step' Increases

Teachers in the single, statewide school system also don't receive
incremental, or "step," raises for an additional year of service, as
teachers do in many other states. That's why the size of the raise they
are requesting may appear on the high side compared with those granted
teachers elsewhere, union officials say.

Ms. Lum added that without a new contract, Hawaii's teachers, who
have been in a "cooling-off period" since mid-January, cannot begin
implementing several initiatives that the state and the union have
agreed on. Those measures include a new teacher-evaluation method and a
program of peer review and assistance for teachers.

"We're trying to stabilize the teaching profession," Ms. Lum argued,
noting that Hawaii has a teacher shortage and a high turnover rate.

During hearings late last year before a fact- finding panel
appointed by the Hawaii Labor Relations Board, the union presented
evidence that an average of 35 classrooms are empty every school day
because of a lack of teachers, and that 75 classes a day are taught by
substitutes.

Greg Knudsen, a spokesman for the Hawaii Department of Education,
acknowledged that many teachers will retire in the next few years, and
that it is becoming difficult to fill the positions because turnover is
highest among the youngest teachers.

"We're continually replacing new teachers," he said.

So far, negotiations have not been able to bring the two sides into
agreement, though talks had resumed as of late last week.

In January, the fact-finding panel released its recommendations for
a settlement, which were ultimately rejected by both parties.

The panel recommended a 19 percent raise over four years, saying
that the state budget is expected to have a surplus this fiscal year
and next, even after factoring in the costs of the Felix consent
decree.

But in a letter to the labor-relations board, Mr. Yogi, the state
negotiator, argued that the surplus "should not be seen as a sign that
the state can afford the future cost of pay raises for teachers," and
pointed out that the state is legally bound to balance its
budget.

'Obvious Failure'

He also wrote that the panel's recommendations showed "an obvious
failure on the part of the panel to grasp the complexities of the state
budget." It was "unfortunate that the fact- finding process proved to
be an exercise that has done little to advance the cause of reaching a
just and fair settlement," Mr. Yogi said.

Karen H. Ginoza, the president of the teachers' union, praised most
of the conclusions of the fact-finding report, but said that the panel
offered nothing to reward teachers with the most experience—those
with more than 30 years in the classroom.

In 1997, the union came within an hour of striking, but a last-
minute agreement was reached. The last strike, which lasted for two
weeks, was in 1973.

Ms. Lum said she expected this week's vote to be in favor of a
strike. "Our teachers are angry," she said. "They are frustrated, and
they are ready to take action."

And scheduling a walkout during early April would have the maximum
impact on the state's roughly 184,000 public school students. While
Hawaii has a lot of schools on modified schedules, all schools will be
in session at that time.

Mr. Yogi said that the state was still open to suggestions, such as
those that might come from the legislature.

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